RUSE

In Ubisoft’s new RTS title, RUSE, players have to use intellect to deceive the enemy through spying, decoy and radio silence in campaigns full of betrayal and manipulation. Taking place during World War II, players can wage war in a series of different locations including North Africa, France, Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands.

RUSE provides gamers with a different approach to traditional war RTS titles, as the various means of deceiving the enemy prove to be just as important – if not more – than the warfare itself.

Ubisoft’s senior brand manager Phil Brannelly tells MCV: “Eugen Systems has succeeded in producing a truly accessible and fun-to-play RTS game on both PC and consoles. The recent eight out of ten review in Edge summed it up perfectly – ‘Eugen’s real triumph has been in packaging the game’s complexities in an entirely accessible manner, and has found a way to facilitate deep strategy on just a handful of buttons, streamlining the interface at little cost to the tactician’.”

The game’s single-player campaign allows users to step into the shoes of either the American Joe Sheriden, or Germany’s Erich Von Richter.

In the main online battle mode, players can work with, or against, up to eight friends with six factions available to choose from including USA, Germany, UK, France, Italy and the USSR.

Ubisoft also points out this is among PS3 Move’s very first titles, adding simplicity to the user interface and reaching out to casual gamers.

Brannelly adds: “Our target audience is mainly 16 to 34-year-old gamers, but we are keen to encourage those who may not have played an RTS game before, as well as those who have left the genre after recent tactical RTS games.”

GLOBAL DECEPTION

The choice of country is an important one for gamers as each possess contrasting skills and styles.

The US army is the most balanced, with good units available at cheap prices, while Germany has the most powerful but also the most expensive units in the game.

The UK has the best air power in the game with the most effective aircrafts, making it the ideal choice for players aiming to dominate the skies.

France is the most defensive faction with strong bunkers and heavy artillery, while Italy has speed on its side and the USSR has powerful tanks and bombers.

HOSTILE HOAXING

Graphics are powered by the new ‘Iriszoom’ engine that shows maps one hundred times larger than in previous RTS titles.

This device allows gamers to view the battle from so far away that it’s like looking at board game, as well as giving players the chance to zoom in to the heat of battle. From here, users can take the role of a military chief, controlling troops and units at ground level.

The element that distinguishes RUSE from other RTS games is its emphasis on players fooling the enemy and bluffing their way to victories through a variety of ruses.

The radio silence ruse can be implemented by players to hide all units in a sector. This ensures that units created by gamers will remain undetected by the enemy, as long as they remain in the chosen sector. The spy plan has the opposite effect and reveals all unknown enemy units in a particular area.

Gamers can also use the decryption ruse to reveal all enemy orders, with bright red arrows highlighting a sector so that players can remain one step ahead of the competition.

A series of choices are available to players who want to trick the enemy using decoys. The decoy offensive sees players send five decoy units towards the enemy to trick them into attacking the simulated army, while dummy buildings can be used to draw the enemy’s attention to unimportant buildings and structures.

Meanwhile, stealth fans can use the element of surprise on enemies with the camouflage net. This allows gamers to hide buildings in sectors and create hidden factories near enemy lines – allowing for surprise attacks that opponents would not see coming.

BATTLE PROPAGANDA

Ubisoft has kicked off a comprehensive marketing campaign to spark interest in RUSE and give the RTS title exposure.

Advertisements have already ran in a selection of Future and Imagine Publishing games magazines, which promoted the game’s beta test – pulling in more than 1m players worldwide.

With 8m online ad impressions, a range of retail POS materials including posters, and exposure at Multiplay’s i40 LAN event at Newbury, RUSE is one of this year’s most talked about RTS titles.

This collector’s edition includes a SteelSeries Xai Laser Mouse, which is specially designed to enhance a player’s performance in the game.

The sensory innovative mouse, developed with consultation from full-time professional gamers from across the world, shows improvement over current laser mice with reliable and accurate tracking during the fast-paced gameplay of RUSE.

The RUSE: Pro Gamer Limited Edition is available from September 10th for £79.99.

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